Killers of Japanese national Kunio Hoshi, who was shot dead in Rangpur's Alutari village on October 3, appeared to have used a bus as a cover during the murder.

At least three witnesses, including two of the three men who rushed Hoshi to hospital, said the long-haul bus was pulled over on the 12-feet-wide main road, just behind the red motorbike used by the killers, to block the view.

One of the attackers was waiting on the bike while the two others waylaid the rickshaw carrying Hoshi on the dirt road.

After shooting Hoshi four times at close range around 10:00am, the two hurriedly got on the bike and headed northwards.

"I don't remember any passenger getting down or on the bus at that time," said Jobed, 60, caretaker of a piece of land in the area.

"Still the bus waited there, and only moved after the bike started."

Contacted over the phone, investigation officer Mamun-ur-Rashid Mamun declined to talk to this correspondent.

Police are yet to confirm the motive behind the murder.

However, Rangpur Superintendent of Police Abdur Razzak said they already have the information about the bus.

"But nothing can be disclosed for the sake of the probe," Razzak said, adding, "We are following every possible lead to get to the bottom of the murder."

According to Jobed, about 20 people, who were at the tea stalls on either side of the road about 150 yards from the murder scene, saw the bus only. After they heard the gunshots, they came out in the middle of the road.

"I thought the bus collided with another vehicle," said Mostofa Hossain, 45, a shopkeeper and also one of the three who took Hoshi to hospital.

Another witness, Aminur, 35, said, "The motorcycle came to our notice only after we approached the bus."

"But the motorcycle had already started to leave and the bus followed it," he added.  

None of the witnesses, however, could tell who the bus belonged to since they were busy taking Hoshi to hospital at that time.

During a visit to the area, this correspondent learned that buses of three bus service providers operate on the route from Hargachh Bus Station, over 5km away from the murder scene, to the capital.

A counter master of one of the bus service providers at Hargachh refuted that it was their bus.

Jamil, counter manager of Karnaphuli Express at Hargachh, said one of their buses reached Hargachh from Dhaka before 9:00am that day.

Police had questioned three staff who were on the trip, said Jamil.

"Police questioned us for half an hour at Haragachh Police Outpost," said Aminul Islam, who was the supervisor on the trip. He claimed that they showed evidence of reaching the station before 9:00am to the police.

No one from another bus service provider could be contacted for comments.

Police so far arrested Humayun Kabir Hira and Rashedun Nabi Khan Biplob and took each of them on a 10-day remand in connection with the murder.

Though Biplob was sent to jail after three days, Hira was on remand for five days for a second time on October 15.

Apart from the two suspects, police detained Monnaf Ali, who carried Hoshi on his rickshaw, and Morad Hossain, son of the owner of the house in front of which Hoshi was killed.

According to families of Hira and others, Hira's wife Sultana Khatun, Hoshi's farmer Abdur Rashid, Hoshi's house owner Golam Zakariya Bala, his wife Ayesha Zakariya and one Abdulla have been picked up by the police at different times after the murder, but they have not returned home yet.